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Professional Secretaries International Records, Red River Chapter,

 Collection
Identifier: Mss 141

Scope and Contents

The PSI records consists of presidential correspondence, chapter and board of directors minutes, committee reports, treasurer's reports, and the Double R News and national reports. All the files are arranged chronologically usually by the September through June year used by the organization. There are no records from 1957 to 1962. The Historical Material File contains the chapter's charter, its aims and activities booklets, and the documentation of the name change in 1981. In the chapter and board minutes from May 1978 to June 1982 agendas were added along with copies of letters to potential speakers for the chapter's monthly meetings. The numerous committee records are arranged alphabetically by committee name. All correspondence is filed chronologically. However, there are a few exceptions. The Big Sister Committee is filed after the Membership Committee because presently the Membership Committee now does its duties and the Big Sister Committee worked so closely with that committee when it was in existence. The records for BOTY and SOTY are found after Secretaries week since that committee now handles those activities. Also found with the Secretaries Week Files are the special April issues of Double R News devoted to that week's activities. The Membership Retention and Orientation Committee existed from 1974 to 1980 and its duties placed with the Membership Committee. A guest book from 1964-1971 appears after the Membership Retention and Orientation Committee. The Scholarship Committee was a separate committee until 1980 when it was combined with the FSA Committee. The Reports Series, containing treasurer's reports for 1964-1969, also contains membership records for those years and annual chapter reports for 1978 to 1981. The Subject Files Series contains a chapter award in 1972-1973 for excellence in educational programming, applications for a gambling permit and a newsletter called Roving Reporter published in 1981. Also contained in these files are personal profiles about a few of the members. The Double R News bulletins which span from 1972 to 1984 are not complete for some years. In the national level records a separate file is maintained for the Minnesota/North Dakota Division Scholarship winner, Monica Smith a Moorhead State University student, of 1975. In May 1981 the annual division meeting was held in Fargo as well as the Northwest District Region III Conference in October 1975. Two files contain information about the Secretary Speakout (an international conference) in 1981 attended by a Red River chapter member, Doreen Hopping, and the Secretary Speakout in 1982 sponsored by the Minneapolis and St. Paul chapters of PSI.

Dates

  • 1957-1991.

Creator

Access

The collection is open under the rules and regulations of the Institute.

Copyrights

Copyrights to this collection remain with the Institute for Regional Studies.

History

The Professional Secretaries International (PSI) was founded in 1942 as the National Secretaries Association. On February 1, 1981 the change of name was adopted by the association. The PSI is divided into districts, regions, divisions, and chapters. The Red River chapter of the PSI was organized in May 1957 with fifteen charter members. By 1982 it had seventy-two members. The Red River chapter belongs to the Minnesota-North Dakota Division and Region III of the Northwest District. The main purpose of the organization is to recognize the need for continuing education for today's secretary. It encourages secretaries to become a Certified Professional Secretary, referred to as a CPS. This is accomplished by an individual taking an exam adopted by the international organization. Membership is open to men and women (men were permitted acceptance in 1967) who have had secretarial training and who are presently employed as a secretary with two years of experience. Other memberships include provisional, associate, honorary and professional retired. Each year an Advisory Board is chosen consisting of the previous year's Boss of the Year plus three members (usually community leaders) chosen by the Board of Directors. Each year, during National Secretaries Week (usually in April) the PSI chapter chooses a Secretary of the Year (SOTY) among its members and a Boss of the Year (BOTY), an individual nominated by his/her secretary. SOTYs have been chosen since 1960 and BOTY's since 1964. The activities and projects of the organization are carried out by its various committees. The Education Committee is responsible for various seminars open to the public. The Scholarship Committee along with the Future Secretaries Association (FSA) works with high school students encouraging them to enter the secretarial field. The Ways and Means Committee is in charge of the annual Christmas auction which is the main money making project for the chapter. The Bulletin Committee publishes a newsletter, Double R News, nine times a year containing local and national meeting minutes as well as program notices, etc. The Speakers Bureau is in charge of sending chapter members out into the community to further publicize the organization. Other committees work within the organization handling memberships, bylaws and nominations. The chapter meets once a month, September through June. Its Board of Directors and committee chairpersons are chosen in April to serve the following year. Meetings usually consist of a dinner, a program and a business meeting.

Extent

6.8 Linear Feet (6.8 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The main purpose of the organization is to recognize the need for continuing education for today's secretary. It encourages secretaries to become a Certified Professional Secretary, referred to as a CPS. The chapter records consists of presidential correspondence, chapter and board of directors minutes, committee reports, treasurer's reports, the Double R News and national reports.

Provenance

Donated by Professional Secretaries International, Red River Chapter in 1982, 1984, and 1985 (Acc. 2071, 2107, 2138, 2145, 2430).

Property rights

The Institute for Regional Studies owns the property rights to this collection.

Subjects

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Finding Aid to the Professional Secretaries International, Red River Chapter Records
Description rules
Appm
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Institute for Regional Studies Repository

https://library.ndsu.edu/ndsuarchives/collections/institute-regional-studies-archive-collection
Contact:
West Building N
3551 7th Avenue North
Fargo North Dakota 58102 United States

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